Tuesday, 1 November 2016 - Monthly Climate Summary for South Australia - Product code IDCKGC13R0

South Australia in October 2016: Wet and windy about southern districts, cooler nights for most of the State

South Australia as a whole had below average October rainfall, although some coastal locations saw above average rainfall as strong and vigorous cold fronts brought periods of heavy rain. Both maximum and minimum temperatures were generally below average, with very much below average overnight temperatures across eastern districts.

Above average rainfall on southern coasts, below average in the pastoral areas

• Wet conditions observed through September continued in October about southern districts, with particularly heavy rain days in the first and third weeks of the month
• A vigorous westerly airstream with an embedded front brought squally showers and thunderstorms to the southern agricultural areas on the 4th
• Statewide rainfall was 36% below average, but still the wettest October since 2011
• Vigorous cold fronts that crossed the southern parts of State on the 16th and 21st brought further periods of heavy rainfall with daily totals mostly between 10 and 30 mm
• Mount Pleasant reported its wettest October with 152.2 mm for the month, with a few other sites having their wettest October for several decades

Cooler than average days and nights

• Mean maximum temperatures were cooler than average throughout much of South Australia, particularly across the far north and eastern districts where days were 1 to 2 °C cooler than average.
• Overnight temperatures were below average throughout much of South Australia, excluding parts of the far western agricultural areas where night time temperatures were closer to average
• For the State as a whole, maximum temperatures were 0.31°C below the average (lowest since 2010), while minimum temperatures were 0.80°C below the average (lowest since 2003); this is in marked contrast to record warm October 2015

Strong and squally winds at times

• Southern coasts and elevated regions across the agricultural area experienced persistent and strong westerly winds on many days during the month, which intensified when squally and vigorous cold fronts crossed the State
• The strongest wind gust was 113 km/h, recorded on the 4th on Neptune Island

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Maps
	Observed	Anomaly	Decile rank
Total rainfall
Mean daily maximum temperatures
Mean daily minimum temperatures

Click on a map to show it full size in a pop-up window

* note: there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a higher value has gone unreported.

The record at the previous site at Moomba, which ran from 1973 until 1998, was a cooler 12.1 °C in October 1986

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top